HIV transmission through eye splash

Dec 18, 2010

I was performing an accu check on an HIV positive patient when a drop of his blood splashed and landed on a spot just beloe my eye lid-but not on the eye lid itself. At first i wiped it off with my gloved right hand, then i later wshed my face. I went to the ER, and the doctor didn't think it was necessary for a PEP therapy since the risks were etreamly low. I had a rapid HIV+hep C+hep A test performed. The results for the HIV test came back nonreactive, and those for the hepatitis negative.Hep A+C was tested on the patient, and they both came back negative.I am worried because i don;t know if i can trust the validity of the results. Can such an HIV test performed 2-3 hours after the incident, possibly be accurate?I am still planning on retaking another test with 3 months.What is my risk of infection?

Response from Dr. Frascino

Hi,

I agree with the ER doctor. Your HIV-acquisition risk is nonexistent. HIV cannot permeate intact skin. PEP certainly was not warranted. And if there was no chance the blood actually got into your eye, HIV testing would not be warranted either.

The test you took was a baseline test. It would not indicate whether your occupational exposure resulted in infection. Had you had a significant occupational exposure, you would have had a baseline test and then follow-up tests at both the three- and six-month marks. However, as noted above, you did not have a significant HIV-occupational risk and consequently testing was not warranted.

This forum is designed for educational purposes only, and experts are not rendering medical, mental health, legal or other professional advice or services. If you have or suspect you may have a medical, mental health, legal or other problem that requires advice, consult your own caregiver, attorney or other qualified professional.

Experts appearing on this page are independent and are solely responsible for editing and fact-checking their material. Neither TheBody.com nor any advertiser is the publisher or speaker of posted visitors' questions or the experts' material.

The Body is a service of Remedy Health Media, LLC, 750 3rd Avenue, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10017. The Body and its logos are trademarks of Remedy Health Media, LLC, and its subsidiaries, which owns the copyright of The Body's homepage, topic pages, page designs and HTML code. General Disclaimer: The Body is designed for educational purposes only and is not engaged in rendering medical advice or professional services. The information provided through The Body should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or a disease. It is not a substitute for professional care. If you have or suspect you may have a health problem, consult your health care provider.